Hey guys! I hope everyone is good. Sorry for making you wait. Been a little busy :)

Annika was a simple girl.

She had a husband whom she wanted to kiss.

Was that a lot to ask?

Why on heaven, hell and godforsaken earth was the whole damn universe conspiring against it?

It had been two days since their magical date, and every time Annika came in the vicinity of Shivaay, intrusion invited itself into their intimacy. At that precise moment, Annika tapped her shoes loudly as she waited outside his cabin. Owing to the two times having his lips two centimetres away from hers, Shivaay was looking hotter than he ever was in her eyes. And owing to her residual teenage hormones, she wasn't having it easy. She wanted to prance over to him and taste his lips herself. But, every time she tried, she was hit with a wind of shyness that made her root to the ground.

Shivaay came out through the glass door, eyes still on his phone, casually caressed her fingers before holding her hand. Annika wordlessly walked with him as they headed outside to the parking lot; she knew if she tried talking, she would discover a speech impediment which would most definitely be caused by the person who held her hand, and probably, her heart. She put on the seatbelt after she settled herself on the passenger seat, and turned on the radio.

Oh zara zara touch me, touch me, touch me...

Oh zara zara kiss me, kiss me, kiss me...

She was sure she groaned aloud but, it went unnoticed by her husband, who was still on his phone. He hadn't started the ignition yet, and she was unsure why he was mum. He did have a lot of workloads, so she did not disturb him. Annika simply changed the station; she knew that particular radio station usually played English break-up pop songs that hour.

Kiss me, ki-ki-kiss me,

Infect me with your love and fill me with your poison.

She swore it was the first-ever moment in her life she completely abominated Katy Perry from the bottom of her heart. She immediately shut the whole music off, and that caught her husband's attention.

"That's a nice song. Why did you turn it off?" He asked as he started the car, completely utterly oblivious of what was on her head. Annika simply shrugged and looked out the window. He started humming Extraterrestrial in his hoarse voice, and Annika looked at him horrified. It was pure torture she could swear on her life; it was pure torture. It was one thing to listen to Katy, but Shivaay? The dreaded, off-tune singing would have made her guffaw if it weren't for the lyrics, but she was damned. She sneakily put on her earbuds and played death metal on her phone for the rest of the journey.

*

"Hey, guys!" Sushant greeted them at their living room, and Annika eyed him puzzled. She didn't know he was coming, but what surprised her further was when Shivaay went ahead and gave him a fist bump.

"Buddy, I hope you weren't waiting for long," Shivaay said as Omkara brought out boxes of pizzas from wherever he was coming from, probably the kitchen.

"Buddy? Pizza?" Annika asked loudly, but she received no response from them. These were the times she missed Rudra. He would never ignore her.

"I've recorded the pre-game too. Cheerleaders are hotter than ever, man!" Omkara exclaimed, and Sushant grinned at him. Shivaay opened his mouth to say something, but he immediately shut his mouth after his eyes landed on Annika. She looked at them incredulously before heading upstairs. When Shivaay had said that he was busy, she – like any sane person- assumed he was going to be busy with work. Instead, he invited her doofus friend to watch their stupid game while she was fighting the battle of attraction on both sides by herself. Such a man she'd married! It was a crime to leave your woman unattended that way after showing promising gestures her way. Okay, maybe it wasn't a crime, but it should be one. Cursing profusely, she changed into her grey loungewear and went back to the living room where Pinky and Dadi were now seated with the guys.

"... and Annika traumatized the guy for life for proposing her. You know what she did?"

Annika immediately pounced at Sushant and stuffed his mouth with the nearest cushion she could grab at. That was not a story she wanted her in-laws to know, and especially her husband. "I will kill you," Annika said in a dangerous voice as she pulled at Sushant's hair. She looked up to see the terrorized looks on Shivaay's and Omkara's faces, while the ladies simply chuckled. Sushant pushed her away and started coughing. Shivaay put a protective hand around Sushant while Om gave him some water. How much she missed Rudy!

"Chikoo, when a girl asked Shivaay out when he was in second grade, he came home crying. We should be glad he didn't meet you sooner," Kalyani laughed, and both Annika and Shivaay looked at each other embarrassed, for different reasons of course. Shivaay protested to his grandmother with his eyes, which only made the old lady laugh more.

"Wisely said, mummy Ji," Pinky said, chuckling. She glanced at Shivaay and continued, "He gets tongue-tied with other girls. All his arrogance is reserved for me only. Remember how he used to undress and roam naked every time he got angry? He used to refuse to put on clothes until I asked sorry. Dramebaaz!"

The whole room erupted with laughter, except for Shivaay who was glaring at his mom, who had paid no heed to him while he had gestured her to stop while she was narrating the most embarrassing thing he had ever done, in front of her. Looking at Annika laugh at him, so much so that she almost fell down the couch, he reminded himself that he loved his mom too much to actually murder her. "I WAS THREE! Why would you miss that important detail, mother dearest?" He asked through his teeth.

"Did you click any pictures?" Annika asked, not allowing his mom to answer, and Pinky nodded enthusiastically. "I didn't know Shivaay was such a tantrum queen!"

"I bet you are hoping he'd throw some your way, cupcake," Sushant whispered to her and found his head coming in hard contact with a couple of cushions. Shivaay must have heard Sushant because his then abashed eyes shone mischievously at her as he chuckled. Annika rolled her eyes. It would take another century for her man to kiss her, for sure; she'd probably witness that 'tantrum' in their next birth. However, she must admit she was a little curious and very flustered at that thought.

The bell rang, and a few seconds later, Gauri walked in with red eyes. She rushed to Annika, hugged her, and burst into tears. The rest gathered around them, and Annika rubbed Gauri's back as she said some consoling words.

"I left home. I don't know where to go. You need to take me in." Gauri hiccupped, and Annika looked at her flabbergasted. "I worked hard, aced the exams, and even got admission. He's refusing to let me go!" Gauri exclaimed and started crying again.

"Gauri, I'll talk to Uncle, okay? Don't cry..." Shivaay wiped her tears and nodded at Annika. She squeezed Gauri's hands and went to Shivaay's study with him. Right on cue, Annika's phone rang.

"Viru Mausa, Chutki is with me," Annika said immediately after she attended his call and put him on speaker. Knowing her Mausa, he was sick worried the moment Gauri stormed off as anyone else would be.

"Chikoo¸ please reason with her, beta. We can't afford that university's tuition and hostel, and you know that well. I can't get any more loans." Virendar's voice was a little strained, and Annika was immediately guilty. Virendar would never talk about finances unless it was very grave, and Annika knew she was partly responsible for their struggle. Virendar had not wanted to change Annika's schools even if it was out of their budget, which only increased their financial woes. Shivaay was about to interject, but Annika held his hand and shook her head.

"Mausa, let me help out, please. I can ask Tau Ji. I'm supposed to get my shares anyway. Please allow me..." Annika's voice pleaded more than her words did.

"No, Chikoo. After whatever your Tai said..."

"That is different. It is Chutki's future, and this is the least I can do after everything you've done for me." Annika and Virendar had a heated argument, and Shivaay saw a new side of Annika unfold in front of him. He knew after her parent's death, the relationship she had with her paternal side of the family was sour. Despite the bitterness she had, there was a mix of yearning and despondence in her eyes as she mentioned them. With all this, there was a firmness she had when she spoke to Virendar, and Shivaay was sure he hadn't seen that confidence in Annika before.

"I cannot accept..."

"Papa would have done this if he was here," Annika said, and that silenced Virendar. Annika swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat.

"Lalitha Bhabhi would have things to say even if Rajendra Bhaisaab agreed. I don't want her to take everything out at you again." Virendar echoed the worry he had with his words, and Shivaay could only wonder how bad the lady was.

"I'll be fine." Annika didn't say anything more, not wanting her voice to betray her. She heard Virendar agree. He asked her to send Gauri whenever Gauri was ready. Annika cut the call and sat down with slumped shoulders; she felt drained of energy.

"Your Tai is..."

"Very mean, but nothing I can't handle." She gave Shivaay a small smile, and he placed his hand on her shoulder. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She stood up, bobbed her head at him, and gestured to the door.

"You have a superhero for a sister. We have some things to sort, but it's all good now." Shivaay looked at Annika proudly, and Annika looked at the floor, a little flustered. Gauri hugged Annika tightly and muttered a thank you. Pinky asked the girls to come for ice cream, and Shivaay made Annika wait till Gauri left to the kitchen. "If it doesn't work out, Dad and Bade Papa will be more than glad to help."

"I know, Shivaay. Mausa is a proud man, though. Even if they give me the money, there is no surety that he'll accept. But we'll think about that when we have to." Annika ruffled his hair, and he frowned at her as he corrected it. She grinned at him and went to the kitchen. He gave a disapproving look and joined the guys to watch the game.

*